Stunning visual effects on a modest budget To oversee this painstaking effort, Scorsese turned to Oscar® winning visual effects supervisor Rob Legato, whose numerous credits …Titanic, Apollo 13, and Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone. In an effort to cost-effectively create the most realistic effects possible, Legato used a hybrid approach including traditional techniques such as miniature models in forced perspective (a method used by Hughes himself in the hugely expensive Hell’s Angels ) and high-end computer …

Stunning visual effects on a modest budget To oversee this painstaking effort, Scorsese turned to Oscar® winning visual effects supervisor Rob Legato, whose numerous credits include Titanic, Apollo 13, and Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone. In an effort to cost-effectively create the most realistic effects possible, Legato used a hybrid approach including traditional techniques such as miniature models in forced perspective (a method used by Hughes himself in the hugely expensive Hell’s Angels ) and high-end computer graphics tools. Amazingly, however, the majority of The Aviator ’s effects were created by Legato, effects editor Adam Gerstel, and a team of independent visual effects artists using desktop computers loaded with Adobe After Effects, Adobe Photoshop, and other off-the- shelf software packages. “In the past, visual effects films went to either Industrial Light & Magic, Sony Imageworks, Rhythm & Hues, or Digital Domain,” says Visual Effects Producer Ron Ames. “This was a big budget movie, but the effects budget wasn’t huge—it had to look like it was though.” A hands-on approach, on the desktop While about 70 of the most intricate computer- generated effects were handled by Imageworks and the midsized shop Café FX, more than 300 were created on Mac and PC-based systems by Legato, Gerstel, and several effects boutiques including DNA, Pixel Playground, Ockham’s Razor, and Buzz. The ability to do the lion’s share of the effects this way is a testament both to Legato’s skill and creativity and to the power, flexibility, and ease of use of the newest generation of PC-based digital imaging products. “What’s revolutionary is that one person can do all these things,” says Legato. “Before After
Effects there were other powerful effects tools, but who could take the time to learn a proprietary software package like the ones used at big visual effects houses?” Legato and his team played an integral role during the filmmaking process. Instead of shooting the main unit and leaving a space for the effects, the effects team was part of the main unit. “Before After Effects there were other powerful effects tools, but who could take the time to learn a proprietary software package like the ones used at big visual effects houses?”

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